Party Divisions:*

Congress Overview

Republicans won congressional majorities for the first time in 15 years after the 1946 elections. The 80th Congress (1947–1949) quickly sent to the states for ratification a constitutional amendment limiting Presidents to two terms, and it reined in trade unions with the Taft-Hartley Labor-Management Relations Act. But foreign policy dominated this Congress, as it reaffirmed America’s new global position. It authorized economic and military aid to countries threatened by the Soviet Union, passed the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe, unified the armed services, and created the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency.